Nodular Mediastinal Tissue

[MsKays1]

Hi there,

I'm a 32 y/o female and I just had a CT scan today and had an incidental finding of the following:

Nodular soft tissue in the anterior mediastinum likely represents residual thymus tissue; however, thymic neoplasm or alternative anterior mediastinal malignancy are not excluded. If there is concern for malignancy, PET/CT may be useful in further evaluation. 3.1 cm.

I had the CT done for a follow up to my acute covid infection. Frankly I'm terrified this could be cancerous, and scared beyond belief..recently enduring covid to the point I was hospitalized for 7 days and trying to manage my long covid symptoms this news is difficult to hear.

Thank You for Taking the Time to Read and Thoughtfully Answer This Post

Courtney

[Sara_MHModerator]

Hello there, thank you for writing to us. I am very sorry to hear about your concerns though. I am sure you are frightened.  Please know that most of the time, things like this do not end up being cancer. Your doctors are going to guide you and evaluate the findings. Have you scheduled that follow up yet? That's your first step. That they consider it to possibly be the result of residual thymus tissue is positive. That's normal. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25882283/  and https://pubs.rsna.org/doi/full/10.1148/rg.302095131  These are links to articles on this.  

You have been through a lot with your covid.  How are your covid symptoms now as you say you have long covid? We are very sorry you are going through this very challenging time.  Let us know if you've set up a follow up just yet with your doctor. We want to help.

[MsKays1]

Hi,

Thank you for your response. It means a lot to me. I have made a follow up appointment with my Dr. which is tomorrow. She has stated she would like to do a PET scan but due to Healthcare guidelines we have to wait 3 months. This sounds like a period of torture; as it puts me in limbo of course thinking the worst yet hoping for the best. I've never been so scared in my life.. I am praying it will turn out to be nothing, or at the most inflammation or hyperplasia. I have read Thymus cancer is incredibly rare, according to the Cancer Centers of America, only 500-1000 people are diagnosed each year. But for some reason I still remain incredibly frightened. I just want to be okay and healthy.. I hope this incidental finding really turns out to be nothing of significance.

I have read the referenced publications you mentioned, they do give me hope.

My covid long haul symptoms predominantly consist of a lot of fatigue, brain fog, digestive issues and random pains and sensations. It almost seems like a new symptom pops up each week.

The past 9 months have been down right hard and cruel. I am praying for a reprieve and some good news.

All my husband and I pray for is for me to be healthy and to be able to finally have a baby and be able to take it to full term happy and healthy.

Thank You for Reading and Thoughtfully Responding,

Courtney

[Sara_MHModerator]

Hi Courtney, thank you for following up. I'm sorry you have to wait for the PET scan. That's hard and leaves so much time for the mind to wander. Whatever you can do to get through it, please do. A therapist to talk about things with could help or a trusted friend who listens well. Doing things you enjoy. Keeping busy. Giving yourself much tender loving care. The odds are that this will have a positive outcome for you.  Remember that! You are also dealing with long covid. Please take care of yourself. Getting energy back takes time. We have a covid forum and there are others that are suffering long covid. It might be nice to support one another there.

Please let me know how the follow up went yesterday.